


The Voice of the Cursed

by Katerina1268



Category: Legacies (TV 2018)
Genre: F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-07
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:41:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,802
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29266677
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Katerina1268/pseuds/Katerina1268
Summary: Post episode 3x03, Jade is still in the picture, and we have a new monster coming the direction of the Salvatore school. Fasten your seat belts :)
Relationships: Hope Mikaelson & Josie Saltzman, Hope Mikaelson & Lizzie Saltzman, Jade & Hope Mikaelson, Jade/Josie Saltzman
Comments: 13
Kudos: 88





	1. Chapter 1

"Okay, this should be good as new by tomorrow. Those healing spells are really impressive." Jade said. She looked up at Josie.  
"You were great, by the way, in the show. Really charming." Both of them smiled. 

"Thanks. I was fighting it at first. I didn't want to think that Elena and I were actually going through the same thing.." Josie admitted. "I've changed, but nothing around me really has." she continued with a sad smile.  
Jade had really a hard time to look at Jo, as she was fighting her own battle. "So, maybe it's not the place for you anymore." She looked at her finally. Josie puzzled. Oh that came out wrong, Jade thought, so she continued.

"I mean, not permanently. Just... maybe you should see what else is out there. You know?" She looked at her again. "That's what I'm doing." 

Josie's brain stopped. Everything what was playing in her head calmed down. "You're leaving?" she asked once again like she could not believe what she just heard.  
"Yeah." Jade admitted quietly. Goodbyes sucks she thought.  
"This place is too tied up in the person I used to be. Also, um..." she struggled. 

"Sorry if this is awkward, but I hate ambiguity." She looked up to Josie again. "We shouldn't be a thing, right? Uh, I mean, like, I'm way older than you. And I used to, like babysit you, so..."

Josie could not help but smile during Jade's speech, she was so cute to trying to explain why they should not be dating.  
"Yeah, it's a little weird." She admitted.  
Her head was spinnig, she does not want to let go of this girl in front of her. Not just yet... 

"But..." she said to get Jade's attention. "um, if you are actually leaving, um..." She was trying to get all the courage from inside her and put it into the words. "I think I would kick myself if I didn't get to kiss you, for real."  
Jade was listening to her, her eyes moving from Jo's eyes to her lips and back.  
"Just because last time I was hopped up on black magic, and just so there's no ambiguity."  
Jade smiled at her, she could not stop herself anymore, maybe it was wrong to kiss her again. Maybe not.  
"Right."  
She leaned into the kiss. It was sweet. 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next morning, Josie woke up in her room, her hand no longer hurting, she took off her bandage, circled her wrist carefully, and bent it. "I love magic." she thought.  
She looked around the room, her sister still asleep after the musical night.

Her stomach churned. She placed her hand on the stomach, as if it were possible to silence the beast inside so as not to wake her sister. She decided to go for breakfast. 

Yesterday's conversation with Jade was still running through her head. Maybe she was right. Maybe she should really change the environment. She was walking toward the school kitchen deep in her thoughts when a person rushed around the corner.  
"Ugh." Josie staggered. At that moment, she felt two strong hands on her arms, which stabilized her.  
"Josie." she heard a familiar voice. "I'm sorry, I didn't notice you. Are you okay?"

"Jade ..." Jo said in surprise, "I thought you were gone."

"I was supposed to leave early in the morning, but a new monster appeared, so I promised your dad I would help." the vampire explained. 

"Oh, ..." was all the young witch could say. "Well..., I'm going to the school kitchen and have something to eat if you want to join in ..." Josie added after a while.  
"Oh yeah, why not. I'd love to." said the vampire.  
This is going to be a bit awkward Josie thought and immediately regret that she asked the vampire to join her for breakfast.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the end, breakfast with the young vampire went better than she thought. They talked about the old good days, when Josie was young. She told what happened during Jade's imprisonment in the prison world with Wendy, Diego, and her uncle Kai. 

Hope watched the two girls' conversation from a distance. Since she was trapped in Josie's subconscious, they haven't had much of a chance to talk. Everything then happened so quickly. Hope was torn from her thoughts.  
"I thought that Edward in woman's body is no longer here to ravage my sister's heart." Lizzie said ironically.  
"Your dad asked Jade to stay. A new monster has appeared." Hope informed Lizzie calmly.  
They both stared at the two young girls at the table, who were laughing at one of Jade's jokes.  
"I refuse to keep watching my sister flirting with the vampire. I'm leaving, and you should go too." Lizzie said, turning on her heel and heading for the classroom. .


	2. Chapter 2

"So, Dr. Saltzman, what do we know about the new monster roaming here?" Jade said as soon as she slammed the door to the headmaster's office.

"Jade." Dr. Saltzman said, startled. "I swear to God, one day you all girls get me in the grave. Do you know you could try to knock before entering?:  
"I'm sorry, you wanted my help, so I'm here," Jade said with a smirk.  
"You know, you remind me of someone," said Alaric.

"Who could it be." said another person behind Jade. It was Hope. The headmaster gave her a smirk.  
"So? Do we have anything?" Hope asked. 

"Unfortunately, we don't know much yet. One of the students saw a monster in the woods, but he can't remember much." Jade exchanged glances with Hope.  
"Stay alert. Hope, you go back to class." Hope nodded.  
"Jade, could you search the area around the school grounds for now? We'll go to the woods together tonight. Maybe we'll be lucky enough to neutralize the monster before it gets close to the school." The two girls nodded and headed out of the headmaster's office. 

On the way back to the classroom, Hope couldn't help herself. She watched the vampire who was walking beside her.  
"So what's on your mind, Hope Mikaelson?" Jade asked, stopping in the middle of the hall.  
"Nothing," Hope replied.  
"Come on, I see you keep staring at me and how you were watching Josie and me at the breakfast. So, spill the beans."  
"Nothing, just that you're leaving, so why are you still talking to Josie, just giving her hope, for something that will never come? Wouldn't it be more sensible to avoid her and save her from further pain?"  
Jade chose an offensive stance and folded her arms. "You mean, like you, who hasn't spoken to her in weeks?" Hope just stared at her, not knowing what to say.  
"I thought so," Jade added, disappearing from the girl's sight.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was around lunchtime when Jade returned from the scouting around the school grounds. She headed to the dining room for a cup of coffee. Several students sat there and had lunch while talking about the following subjects that awaited them that day.

She saw a familiar face sitting at one of the tables. She smiled. It was Josie. A morning conversation with Hope played in her head. She was about to turn around and go in a different direction when the witch's eyes remained fixed on her. Josie smiled at her and waved. Jade took a deep breath and walked toward the girl.

"Hey, Jo, how is your day going," she asked politely and sit down next to the girl.  
"Ah, you know, same as usual, we have many assignments, so I have a hard time following them all," she said.  
"Well, I can hardly believe that Josie Saltzman has a problem with any of these things," Jade replied with a smile plastered on her face. Jeez, girl, pull yourself together, she thought.  
"You know," Josie started, " I was thinking about what you said to me last night."  
Jade did not say anything, just waiting for the girl to continue.  
"Maybe you were right, maybe I do not belong here right now, and I really need a change of the environment. So, I was thinking that maybe I will sign up for Mystic Falls High school. As I am just an ordinary girl now."  
"You will never be just an ordinary girl, Josie," Jade said. Their eyes met.  
"I wish I could tell you what's right, Jo. But.. if you feel like this is the right step you need to take, go for it." She took the hand of the other girl in hers... Josie smiled at her.  
"Please keep it to yourself, I have not had a chance to talk to my dad or my sister yet," she asked her.  
"Of course, Jo. Your secret is safe with me." she smiled at her.

"What secret?" they heard behind. It was Lizzie.  
"Nothing, sis." Josie rolled her eyes.  
"Please do not tell me that you are planning to run away with Éowyn here or worse go to Europe to visit the Satan itself," warned her Lizzie.  
Jade looked confused.  
"Just ignore her, Jade. She is crazy. Come on, let's go." She stood up and went out of the cafeteria with confused Jade behind her.  
Lizzie was watching them leaving the room.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It was late in the evening, Hope was inside her room, thinking about the next painting.  
"Hope Andrea Mikaelson, we have a problem," said Lizzie while storming inside the room of the other girl.  
"What's wrong now, Lizzie? " said Hope calmly, just ignoring the fact that the witch run inside her room without knocking.  
"One word. Josie." replied the witch.  
"What's wrong with her?" Hope put away her sketchbook.  
"She is just ignoring me all day, and spent the time with the vampire girl like I do not exist anymore." Hope rolled her eyes.  
"Seriously, Lizzie, just go over it. She is all grown up."  
"I am not going to watch how another person is going to break my sister's heart into million pieces... Because then I am the one who is collecting them," she replied.  
" I really do not have time for this right now, Lizzie, we are about to leave and get the monster down."  
Lizzie looked surprised. "You are leaving with the super squad and you have not told me?"  
"No, Lizzie, I am going with your father and Jade," she replied. "No super squad this time."  
Lizzie calmed down a bit, "I see, maybe, can you just make sure that the monster will eat this Jade girl, so we can live happily ever after?"  
"Bye, Lizzie." Hope walked past the blonde and left the room.

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	3. Chapter 3

When Hope arrived at the gate, Dr. Saltzman and the young vampire were already waiting for her.  
"Ready?" the headmaster asked, slinging his crossbow over his shoulder. Both girls nodded.  
"Keep in mind that we don't know exactly what the monster is, so please be careful. The last info I got from the students was that the monster was moving south of the school in the woods. We should start there." He turned on his heel and stepped forward with the girls close behind him. 

They walked in silence. Alaric was a few steps ahead, constantly exploring the area. Hope's eyes still on the other girl.  
"So, when exactly are you leaving?" Hope broke the silence.  
"As soon as we find out what we're looking for," Jade replied dryly.  
"So tomorrow morning." Hope snorted.  
Jade wasn't in the mood to have a conversation with Hope, she knew where the conversation would turn - to Josie. So she moved quickly to get to the level of the headmaster. Hope kept her eyes on her.  
They arrived at the place where the monster was to be last seen. They stood on the edge of a small meeting that converged into a deep forest. There was a cave nearby.  
"Don't you think the monster is hiding in that cave?" Hope asked. "Quite a naive hiding place."  
"Maybe, but we won't find out until we go inside that cave," Alaric said, moving forward.  
When they entered the cave, the first thing Hope smelled was the horrible stench of a dead animal.  
"Ugh, seriously," she said and covered her nose. Jade just rolled her eyes.  
In front of them was an altar, with the remains of dead beasts on it.  
"What the hell?" said Jade.  
Alaric moved closer to the altar to see the signs and ancient runes on it.  
"Hm, I do not know any of these symbols. Girls? Aren't you familiar with some of those?" he asked.  
The two girls approached the altar.  
"Ugh. No, I've never seen any of these.." Hope said and stepped back.  
"Me neither," said Jade.  
"I see," Alaric said, pulling out his phone and taking a picture. "Looks like it is on a night hunt. It can't be far ..." he said, heading out of the cave. 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Josie was annoyed, she wanted to spend the evening studying, but her sister brought MG for a movie night. Josie just rolled her eyes and apologized that she was hungry and went for something small to eat.  
She headed for the kitchen. Most of the corridors were already empty as the students got ready to sleep. Josie walked quickly through the dark corridors. The lights were still on in the kitchen, but no one was there.  
Josie began rummaging in the cupboards, looking for her favorite cookies.  
"It must be somewhere here," she mumbled to herself.  
Suddenly the light went out. Frightened, Josie straightened up.  
"Hello, I don't know if you noticed, but there are people in here," she said into space as if she was expecting an answer. But none came.  
She headed for the light switch at the door. Along the way, she tripped on a pot that rumbled across the room.  
"Ugh, kids just can not put the stuff where it belongs ..." she thought it was another dumb joke of one of the students who had not yet forgiven her for rampaging in the quarrels of black magic.  
"Come on, it's not funny anymore," Josie said.  
At that moment, a black silhouette appeared in front of her. Two green eyes shone in the dark.  
"Um, hello, uh, are you looking for cookies too?" Josie said fearfully and began to move away from the creature slowly. The silhouette began to approach her.  
"You know, uh, I'd love to hurt you, but I don't have any magic in me, so what if you just go your way, huh?" she asked politely.  
At that moment, the phone began to vibrate in her pocket ... 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Josie doesn't answer the phone," Hope told the others, knowing that if Josie was busy learning, the phone was the last thing she noticed.  
"Lizzie neither," said Alaric. "Why they can't just pick up the damned phones?"  
"Josie must be buried in books somewhere, and Lizzie ... she's just Lizzie," said Hope to calm Alaric a little.  
"Maybe we should go back?" suggested Jade.  
"I think it's a good idea," Alaric replied. 

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Josie opened her eyes. She sat down. She was still in the kitchen. She looked around the room, the lights were on again. Is it possible that she just dreamed it and fainted? No, it can not be.  
"Ugh" she grabbed her head, which was really rattling. At that moment, she noticed that she had something on her arm. She rolled up her sleeve carefully. She had a red handprint on her right hand as it was burned into her skin. She was terrified.  
She heard footsteps in the hallway. She quickly rolled down her sleeve and tried to stand up. Her head spun. She was saved from falling by two hands.  
"Jo?" she heard a girl's voice.  
"Jade?" she blinked a few times and saw a familiar girl in front of her.  
"Are you okay? Did something happen?" Jade asked, examining the girl for any injuries.  
"No, I'm fine. Just, uh, I went for the cookies and I probably got dizzy. When I study, I completely forget to eat and ..." Josie muttered.  
Jade studied her carefully.  
"Okay, your dad and Hope should be back soon, um ... vampire speed and stuff .. so I am here a little earlier." Jade smiled. "Come on, I'll walk you back to your room."  
Josie didn't object, she didn't feel like going into the room alone. Jade put her arm around her waist and they headed to her room. Josie looked back at the empty kitchen for the last time.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When Hope was on the way back to her room, she noticed that the door to the twins' room was open.  
"If you need anything, just let me know, Jo." she heard a familiar voice.  
"Thank you, really," said the young witch.  
"Okay, I'll let you rest. Have a good night."  
She saw the girl coming out the door, she didn't even have time to react and disguise her eavesdropping of the conversation.  
"Um ..." was all Hope said.  
Jade looked at her, stopped, but just exhaled and headed for her room.  
Hope was still standing on the same spot. She wondered if she should go and talk to Josie. Eventually, she mustered up the courage to knock on the door.  
"Um, Jade, you don't have to knock again ..." Josie didn't finish the sentence, seeing a tribrid in front of her instead of the vampire.  
"Hope ..." was all Josie said.  
"Um, hi Josie, sorry, I saw that you still have the light on, so..." Hope excused herself.  
It's okay, Hope." the girl smiled at her. "Lizzie went to MG's room for some CD he forgot to give her." She knew why her sister left, as she did not want to watch Josie with Jade as Lizzie called them the new Twilight couple.  
Hope sat on the edge of the bed. She didn't know where to start.  
"Hey ..." she repeated, smiling. They stared into each other's eyes.  
"I am sorry." Hope finally said. "I am sorry I didn't have time to stop by. Talk to you. So many things happened. Malivore. The Necromancer. Then you left .. I'm sorry, Jo, what you had to go through and I'm even more sorry that I was not with you. " she grabbed the young girl's hand.  
"No, Hope, there is nothing to be sorry about. I was messing with dark magic and it backfired at me. So, I am sorry for what I caused you. And also, thank you for saving me. " she said.  
"I would say that you more or less saved yourself, Jo," said Hope. They both smiled. There was a silence.  
"Please do not be a stranger," Josie said quietly.  
"I won't," promised Hope.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Josie woke up early. Her head was no longer throbbing. She got up carefully and went to the bathroom. Memories of yesterday's strange meeting crossed her mind. She pulled up her sleeve, but there was no sign of the handprint anywhere. Maybe I am really going crazy, Josie thought.  
The next few days passed calmly. There was no sign of the monster. And it seemed like life was back on track. Josie spent some of the time with Jade and also with Hope. She decided that she will keep her decision to move to the other school after this new monster will be gone. So, she could spend some quality time with her family without worrying about the monster.  
\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"A masquerade ball? Seriously, Lizzie?" Hope asked surprisingly.  
"Sure, why not? Seems like the monster is no longer around, so we can chill and have some fun. The social association is something you should practice more often, Hope." said the witch.  
"We just finished with the musical."  
"And that's why we should keep up to the hype and enjoy it till it lasts, Do not tell me you would not like to dance with you Frodo boy. You will have fun."  
"Trust me I can come up with many things that are fun, but the masquerade ball is not one of them," Hope replied and left.  
Lizzie just watched her leave and then turn around the other direction to the twin's room so she can share the idea with her sister.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
"Play the trumpets, sis, because I just got the .. BEST.. IDEA.. EVER." she spun around.  
Josie just watched her sis and said nothing.  
"We will have a masquerade ball tomorrow night."  
"What?" asked Josie.  
"Yes, sis and you and me will be the queens of the night, and we will conquer the dance floor."  
"Lizzie..I really do not want to have any social interaction with people and I really do not have time for anything like this. I have many exams next week and I need to study." Josie quickly came up with many reasons why she can not really go, she started to panic.  
"Come on, sis, it will be fun, and, I am not happy to say this, but you can also invite your vampire friend. So, maybe she will finally have some fun and stop being the cold bitch.  
"This is rude, Lizzie. Jade is a really kind and sweet person."  
"Yeah, well, not with me.. Anyway. we need to go shopping today after school, so please do not get stuck in the library for once. This is really important for me, Jo." she made her point clear.  
Josie just rolled her eyes, she does not want to disappoint her sister, so she promised her that she will be back on time.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
After morning lessons and afternoon in the library, Josie and her sister went shopping for the upcoming evening. It didn't take long for the girls to pick the right robes.  
On the way back to their room after the small trip, they met Jade, she was in the corridor checking the poster for the event.  
"What a cool thing, isn't it?" Jade said as Josie approached her.  
"Yeah ..." was all Josie said.  
Lizzie wasn't interested in any interactions with the vampire, so she continued into the rooms.  
"Looks like you're ready for tomorrow night," Jade said, nodding at the dress Josie had in her hand.  
"No, yeah..Lizzie wouldn't forgive me if I didn't buy new clothes for an event like that .... She's a little obsessed with these things."  
Both girls smiled.  
"Right. Well, Uhm, I hope you will enjoy the evening. It will definitely be fun. "  
"Ugh, won't you attend? You know, um ... ”Josie hesitated, she didn't want to go with her sister, she knew she'd vanish as soon as they got to the party. "I thought ... that we could go together." Jade kept looking at her ... "Um, I mean as friends." Josie added quickly.  
Jade stared at the girl as if she was trying to read the answer from her face.  
"Yeah, I'm so sorry, but your father asked me to supervised the event from the outside and you know just in case. So, I don't think I would be a good company," she said sadly.  
"No, well, of course. It's okay, I'll be on the dance floor with MG all night anyway, and so on. So, yeah, no worries. Have a good night, Jade." Josie was babbling. She turned quickly and went to her room before the other girl could say anything. 

She closed the door behind her.  
"So? How did it go? Will she be your escort? ”Lizzie began to ask immediately.  
Josie still couldn't believe what had just happened. "Ugh, not really. She refused. "  
"What?" Lizzie didn't understand. "The last few weeks she has been drooling over you, and now that she has a chance to spend a pleasant time with you she refused? That's insane.” the blonde was furious.  
"Lizzie, our father asked her to monitor the perimeter of the school and supervised the event. It's not like she has time anyway. ”Josie stood up for the girl.  
"Ok, let's hope that Jed could be your escort, so you will not be coming by yourself, that would be totally unacceptable."  
Josie just rolled her eyes. She was sorry that Jade wouldn't be there to spend time with her, but she understood her reasons. After all, she promised to help with the monster thing, not to attend any silly school stuff.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
It was the night of the masquerade ball that everyone had been talking about all day.  
Lizzie was getting ready in her room with her sister when someone knocked on the door.  
"It'll probably be MG, I told him to pick me up here," Lizzie said cheerfully.  
And she was right in the doorway, MG stood there in a blue tuxedo, with his favourite sneakers and yellow sunglasses in his pocket. "Wow, Lizzie, you look ... Uhm, you look really great." said the young man in astonishment, he was enchanted by how good the witch looked. He gave her a red rose. She blushed.  
"Thank you, MG.," she said.  
Lizzie wore a burgundy dress that lined a tight corset at the top and stretched at the bottom like a budding rose. She wore a gold bracelet with a burgundy emerald. Her hair was pulled back into a bun and she had a burgundy mask on her face with a black bird's feather on one side. He couldn't take his eyes off her.  
"I'll see you, Jed should be here in a minute and pick you up. "Don't be too late," Lizzie said to her sister.  
"Sure, sis, see you later," replied Josie.

The door closed. Josie was far from ready, she was devoting all her attention to her sister again, so now she had to move to be ready as quickly as possible.  
At that moment, someone knocked on the door.  
"But no, Jed ..." Josie was startled. She began to panic.  
"Hmm .. I'll be right there, just a moment," she shouted.  
"Josie?" she heard a girl's voice outside the door. This was not the voice she thought she would hear. She opened them.  
"Hope?" she said in surprise. She looked at the dress the girl was wearing. "You look stunning."  
"Hi, thank you, Jo. Uhm, I saw Lizzie go out with MG, so I thought I'd stop if you maybe need any help?" she said.  
"Um, isn't Landon waiting for you?" she asked.  
"Well, yes, I sent him ahead with Jed actually, neither of us is a fan of these things, so ..." she muttered. "Can I come in?"  
"Well, yeah, sure ..." Josie said, backing away from the door.  
"So, Jed is with Landon? You know you just stole my escort and now I will have to go by myself?"  
"Technically, we'll go together, and moreover ... the boys will be waiting for us right away, so ..." Hope countered.  
"Okay, ten minutes and we can go, I just have to change," Josie said and disappeared into the bathroom.  
Hope was looking around the room, her attention was caught by photos on Josie's bedside table, there was a photo of her and Lizzie, when they were kids, with Caroline. On the second photo was also them but this time also with their father, and the third was a photo with friends from the school having a picnic. Hope smiled over the nice memories. At that moment the bathrooms door went open. And there was Josie.  
Hope realized she is holding her breath, the girl in front of her was looking amazing. She was wearing a black dress, similar to Lizzie's. The upper part was a corset and the lower part stretched to the sides. Josie wore a black necklace and a black mask. Her hair was combed to one side, which ran down her shoulder in curls.  
"Jo...um, you look great." Hope finally said.  
"Yeah, well I know the black colour is not maybe the best choice.. right..but, I thought these are super nice," she said.  
"It is perfect," Hope confirmed and offer the girl her arm. She happily accepted.  
\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you guys, the song I would love to play while Jos and Jade dance - Freya Ridings Unconditional :)

They arrived at the party, both boys were waiting for them at the entrance. Landon was trying to explain to Jed the difference between Gandalf and Saruman and their powers.  
"No, really, believe me, Gandalf was great ..." He stopped at that moment as he saw the two girls approaching.  
"You look great. Both of you." Landon said, getting closer to Hope, who gave him a brief kiss.  
"Thank you, Landon," Josie said, smiling. Jed agreed and said some nice words to both girls as well.  
"Can we?" Hope said after a minute of small talks, and the two couples headed inside.  
The gym was lit by colourful lanterns, on the other side was built a small podium, on which was a DJ. There were people in masks everywhere. Josie looked around the room to try to find her sister. After a few seconds, she saw her in the middle of the dance floor with MG.  
"I'm going for a drink, would you like anything?" Jed offered.  
"Well, anything that can be drunk, perhaps a punch?" Josie said. Jed smiled and headed for the bar.  
Josie turned to the other couple, but they were already out of sight as Hope tried to push them onto the dance floor.  
"They're not fans of these events ...sure," Josie told herself, shaking her head with a smile.  
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
The evening continued in great spirit, everyone had a good time. Josie danced perhaps a thousand songs on the dance floor together with MG and her sister. Hope finally untied herself as well.  
After another challenging dance number, the DJ announced that was time to slow down a bit. At that moment, Josie headed for the table to avoid Jed's offer to dance. 

"I thought it would be more fun." said the vampire, looking around the room.  
She turned around and saw the girl behind her.  
"Jade," she said enthusiastically. "What are you doing here? I thought you were on a patrol."  
"Well, I've walked around the perimeter a few times and there were no monsters in the last few hours, so I thought I'd see how it went inside." the vampire shrugged.  
"Did you walk around in this dress?" Josie teased her.  
"Well, it's not the most comfortable, but why not," she replied with a smile.  
Josie smiled at her. It suited the young vampire very well. "You look beautiful," she said boldly.  
"You too, Jos." replied the vampire. Her eyes flashed.  
The DJ started playing another slow song.  
"Um, so ..." Jade stood in front of Josie and held out her hand. "Shall we dance?" she asked, looking into the girl's eyes.  
Josie blushed and accepted the outstretched hand. They headed for the dance floor.  
Jade led Josie to the centre of the floor, turned her around, and wrapped her arms around her waist. The girls were so close that Josie could feel Jade's breath on her skin.  
They slid to the beat of the music, neither said a word. They just enjoyed each other's presence. Josie rested her head on the older girl's shoulder. She closed her eyes. She had never felt so safe than in this girl's arms.  
"Jo ..." Jade said softly after a couple of minutes  
Josie raised her head and looked at the girl.  
"I know I said I'd stay a little longer because we're still trying to catch the monster, but it looks like it left on it own, so I probably don't need to stay any longer." Josie did not say anything. Jade continued.  
"I just wanted to tell you that no matter what happens, I'll always be around, and if you need help or just wanna talk, let me know. You are special, Josie. the more time I spend here with you, the more I find out how great you are and I've started to feel something that I shouldn't." She knew that these feelings are equal. Josie knew that this was not right, she hated the world that it takes away another person from her life, a person who she slowly fell in love with.  
None of them said anything. Josie made another bold move and she closed the distance between them and leaned for a kiss. It was soft simple kiss they shared. Jade gently wiped the tear that ran down Josie's cheek and hugged her.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"What do you think is happening between them?" Lizzie asked, stepping closer to the tribrid watching the whole scene from a distance. Hope was startled. She didn't expect Lizzie to catch her watching her sister twice in a few days.  
"Um, I don't know. Do they probably confess their love?" Hope added dryly.  
"Probably not, I heard dad talk to Jade this morning about her leaving. More like a goodbye kiss. Again." said Lizzie.  
Little did Hope know that Jade was planning to leave so soon, she thought she would stay till they will catch the last monster. The young girl felt sorry for Josie, even though she didn't want to admit it herself, she likes Jade in her way, and it was clear that in her presence the young witch was constantly happy with a smile on her face.


	6. Chapter 6

She sat in her room in front of the fireplace, her eyes fixed on the blazing flames of the fire. She held a rose flower in her hand, which she had received from Jade. The door to the room opened. Her sister entered.  
"Hi, Jo," she said softly, sitting next to her sister in front of the fireplace. Both girls were already in their pajamas, getting ready for bed after the ball night.  
"Hello," she replied giving her sister a small smile. Lizzie didn't know what to say. She hugged her sister. Josie put her head on her shoulder. Tears began to stream down her cheeks. They sat like that in silence for several minutes before the brunette calmed down a bit.  
"Thank you, Lizzie, I don't know what I'd do without you," she said.  
"Always, Jo," Lizzie said, squeezing her sister's shoulder gently. Josie straightened up and looked at her sister.  
"I've been thinking a lot, Lizzie, and I'd like to be transferred to Mystic Falls." Her sister stared at her in disbelief.  
"I feel like I need to leave for a while and live a life beyond all this." She swung her arms around the room. "Having an ordinary life, like an ordinary girl, and since the monster didn't show up anymore, and that ..” she swallowed and took a breath. " I hope to have your support, Lizzie." She looked into her sister's eyes. Her sister just nodded. She couldn't imagine school days without her, but she also knew it might be the best solution for Josie, and she wanted to give her time and space to be happy again.  
"I've called mom during the day, and I want to tell dad tomorrow," Josie added, rising from the spot close to the fireplace. Lizzie did the same. They hugged once more. "Do you think, um, do you think we could sleep in your bed today?" Lizzie asked. Josie rolled her eyes, "Come on."  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Lizzie was having breakfast when Hope and Landon sat down next to her.  
"Good morning, Lizzie," Hope said with a smile.  
"Hi, Hope." the blonde replied dryly.  
“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed, I guess,” said Hope. “Didn't you enjoy last night? And where is Josie, anyway?” Hope looked around the room trying to spot the other sibling.  
"Josie left with my dad to Mystic Falls High. She wants to get transferred there,” Lizzie said.  
"WHAT?!" said Hope with Landon at the same time.  
"What do you mean transfer? She doesn't have her powers, who will protect her there and who will help her if she is in danger?” Hope was terrified, how comes that the witch has not told her anything. There were no clues. Her head was spinning.  
Landon put a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure the monsters will avoid Mystic Falls, after all. everything that attracts them is at this school. She will be fine.” Landon tried to reassure her. Hope wasn't sure if the ex-phoenix was talking to himself or her.  
"Is your father okay with that?" Hope asked in disbelief.  
"Hope, it's her decision, and although I’ve already missed her, I and my father fully support her," Lizzie said in a determined voice and left. Hope and Landon stayed at the table in shock.  
“Well, I do not know about you, but I have not seen that coming,” he said after a minute or two.  
“Me neither” she admitted sadly. “I need to go there and talk to her.” She got up.  
“Hope, be reasonable, she just left, and it is not like she is going to stay there today, she will be probably back soon. Let’s take our classes and talk to Jo in the afternoon.”  
“I can’t, Landon. I will think about it all day. I gotta go.” She turned around and left.  
“Hope, Hope!” he called after her, but she was gone.  
“Perfect,” he said ironically and headed to the class.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
She slammed the front door of the school. How could Josie leave and say nothing? Why didn't the girl tell her anything? Hope was determined to go to Mystic Falls and talk to Josie.  
She arrived in front of the school when she saw a familiar car in the parking. She was about to open the entrance door but instead, she bumped into her headmaster.  
“Hope? What are you doing here, why aren't you at school? What's happening?" Alaric began.  
"No, nothing is happening. I ... actually, I wanted to talk to Josie,” the girl admitted.  
"And it couldn't wait until the afternoon? You have classes, Hope,” he said angrily. Hope ignored him and looked at Josie.  
"Can we talk, please?" she asked.  
"Dad, what if Hope and I took a day off from school today and got some rest. After all, a lot has happened lately..” Josie pleaded with her puppy eyes.  
"Fine, but I'm expecting you back at school this afternoon. No exceptions." He looked at them and left.  
Josie watched him leave and then turned her attention back to Hope. The tribrid was immediately nervous, she felt that maybe she overstepped a bit. But there was no way back.  
“Can we have a walk maybe?” She said pointed to the nearby park.  
“Sure.” The witch agreed.  
They were walking slowly without words.  
“So, why are you trying to get transferred?” asked Hope after a while.  
"I don't know, it may seem like a crazy idea, but I really feel that after everything I've been through and what's happened... I've changed, but everything around me has remained the same. Maybe I just need a different point of view and to be an ordinary person for a while, just live a normal life,” Josie explained.  
“What about your family and friends?" she asked. "What about me?" she added quietly.  
Josie stopped in her track, Hope stopped too and looked back at the other girl.  
“Hope, it is not like I am leaving. I will be attending school during the day and I will be back in the afternoon. We can still hang out and have fun,” she said.  
Hope stepped closer to her friend.  
“Please, just promise me if there will be any danger you will not try to be a hero.”  
“Don’t worry, I have no intention of playing a hero here. I am more like a villain anyway.” She said with a smirk.  
“Josie, I do not think people still see you as a villain and it was not you anyway. It was the black magic inside of you.”  
“Yeah well, easy to be said.” Said Josie while kicking some small stones away from the path. Hope understands that the whole experience is still really fresh and no one can erase her memory or change what she did. It must be hard for someone like Josie. She is really nice, sweet and caring person. She understands that to stand up in front of people after what she did take some courage.  
“Well, what do you say, if we go and grab a coffee, then we can slowly walk back to school? We should enjoy the time we got from your dad, as he is not a giver.” She said with a smirk.  
“I think it is a great idea.” Josie agreed.  
“So, shall we?” she offered her hand like she did the other night and Josie happily accepted.


	7. Chapter 7

It was an early afternoon when the girls returned to school. Hope thanked Josie for a pleasant morning and rushed inside of the school looking for Landon.  
"Hope," a familiar voice stopped her.  
"I'm sorry, Lizzie, I don't have time right now, I need to find Landon," said the tribrid.  
"Oh, don't worry, the muppet is in the library with Wade talking about fairies and unicorns,” she said with zero interest. “I want to ask you something.”  
"Okay, you have two minutes," Hope said quickly.  
"I'd like to make a little surprise for Jo tonight. I talked to dad and her transfer is on, so ... I'd do something like a farewell party. Just a super squad, ...and maybe you can bring the halfwit. ”Lizzie added quickly.  
"First of all, his name is Landon. Second, why do you need me exactly?" Hope asked.  
"I need you to keep Josie busy until everything will be set up."  
"Can't you ask anyone else? I'd like to spend the afternoon with Landon."  
"Come on, Hope. It will only be a few hours. Then you can fly into the room with the ex-bird and have sex all night long. "  
"Lizzie," hissed Hope.  
"So, do we have a deal?" She asked hopefully.  
"Okay. I'll ask Jos if we could meet in the library this afternoon and go through some of the formulas from the last lessons of magic. Satisfied?”  
"Excellent," Lizzie said with a smile and left.  
Hope shook her head and went to the library.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
Lizzie looked at the clock in the classroom. She tapped the pencil impatiently on the notebook. The bell rang. Finally, she thought, she headed out of the classroom. In the hallway, she saw her sister with a pile of books swaying down the hall.  
"Where are you going with all these?" she asked her, though it was clear to her that Hope carried out her part of the bargain. Josie jumped a bit and all the books fell on the floor.  
"Thanks a lot, Lizzie." She snorted. Lizzie rolled her eyes and bent down to help her sister.  
"So?" she was waiting for her sis to reply.  
"Hope asked me if I could study with her in the library this afternoon. She wanted to go through some formulas from the last lessons" she explained to her sister while collecting books.  
“And you need so many books? Isn't the library full of books?” Lizzie asked.  
"Not of the ones we need,” she explained.  
"Okay, so please don't stay too long, I'd like to have a nice evening with my sister," Lizzie said, giving her the last book on top of the pile.

Josie continued toward the library. She entered the room and looked around. Her attention was immediately drawn to the girl with a wide smile on her face, who was waving at her. Josie approached her desk.  
"Hi Josie," Hope said. "If you'd said we needed so many books, I'd pick you up at your room and help you," Hope said a little guilty.  
"No, no worries. I thought one would be enough, but then I immersed myself in it a bit and I ended up ... with all of these,” Josie said amusedly and sat down opposite the girl.  
"So where would you like to start?" she asked.  
“Um. How about a mind breaching spell?” Hope asked.  
"Do not bite more than you can chew, Hope, but sure, we can start with this one." She opened one of the books.

For about five minutes, Josie had been explaining to Hope another of the many spells the tribrid had randomly picked. She knew most of what Josie explained to her, but she still played dumb to buy more time for Lizzie. Hope watched Josie's talking with all the respect for magic. She looked at the girl and completely lost herself in her.  
“Hope? Hello, Earth to Hope.” Josie waved her hand in front of her face.  
“Oh, sorry, Josie. I was just lost in thoughts for a moment.” She apologized.  
"It's okay, I understand you'd rather spend time with Landon than sitting here with me," Josie replied.  
"Not really. I'm glad we spend more time together again, Jo. I missed you." admitted the tribrid. Josie smiled.  
"You miss her, don't you?" Hope asked. Josie knew she was talking about Jade. "I know I've never liked Jade, but you looked really happy together," Hope added.  
"I was happy, but I couldn't hold Jade here against her will. Everything here reminded her of the person she was and no longer wanted to be,” she explained.  
"I understand. It's very noble of you, Josie, and, as always, you selflessly accepted her decision."  
"I'll be happy if she will find her happiness out there,” Josie said.  
"Maybe you're her happiness, Josie, she just hasn't realized it yet," Hope said. Josie smiled, the thought of the vampire returning to her life quickening her heartbeat.

Another hour passed when a little boy with curly hair appeared in the library. He looked around the room and when he saw two young girls, he walked towards them. "Hi Josie, hi Hope," he said.  
"Hi Pedro, how are you?" Josie asked.  
"I am very well, thank you.” He smiled at her and turned his attention to Hope, “I have a message for you from the headmaster. You should meet him in the gym, he says it's urgent," Pedro said and ran out of the room.  
"Uhm, OK, that was weird. Dad doesn't usually send a messenger for himself.” Josie said.  
"Let's find out what's going on," Hope said and got up from the table. Each took her own bag, leaving the books on the table.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
When they arrived at the gym, there was no one around. The lights inside were off. Hope was about to enter the room when the other girl tugged at her sleeve.  
"Wait, Hope. What if it's a trap?” the girl asked.  
"We'll find out soon enough, Josie," Hope said determinedly and entered the room.  
Josie followed her. At that moment, the lights turned on.  
"SURPRISE!!" everyone shouted. It took Josie a few seconds to realize what was happening and for her eyes to adjust to the light. In front of her stood Hope, Lizzie, Landon, MG, Jed, Kaleb, and many other students from the school who she hardly recognizes. A large banner hung over their heads: We'll miss you, Jo.  
"You guys ..." she didn't know what to say.  
"We only wanted to do a little goodbye party, but it kind of spread around, so '" Lizzie said with a smile.  
"This is great, thank you very much. To all of you." Josie said and hugged her sister. Everyone else gathered around them.  
"We'll miss you so much, Jo," MG added.  
"Yeah, I won't have anyone to help me during tests," Jed said. "I'm kidding, Josie, we'll really miss you here." He said and smiled at her.  
"Guys, it's not that I'm leaving, I'll always be back after school and we can spend some time together, plus weekends. And of course, I'm always happy to help you with your homework," said Josie.  
"We'll always be here for you as well," Landon said and hugged his friend.  
The party was in full swing. Josie had the opportunity to chat with more students and meet new additions at school. So much has happened in recent months. She was glad that most people didn't take her like that monster anymore during her rampage with black magic.

Josie was having a great time, she was glad she could spend some time with her friends. Just as Landon started to talk about Star Trek, Josie apologized for having to go to the bathroom. She left the gym and turned the corner. Suddenly a terrible pain in her stomach stopped her.  
"Auch." She hissed and grabbed her belly. Her legs were wobbly, she had to lean against the wall to keep her balance. What was going on, she thought. Another wave of pain came. At that moment, the girl dropped to the ground.  
"Jo? Josie?” she heard a male voice behind her.  
"MG?" Josie said weakly.  
"What's happening? Should I call someone?” he asked.  
"No, it's okay, MG, could you help me to my room? she asked him. She didn't want to scare him.  
"Sure," he replied and lifted the girl back to her feet. Before they reached the room, Josie went thru another three or four waves of pain.  
"Jo, this is not good. Please let me call your father.” The young vampire demanded.  
"Alright, but please, keep it low-key. I don't want to spoil the party." Josie said in pain. Soon her father was in her room followed by Hope, Lizzie, and MG.  
"Josie, what's going on?" he asked worriedly. The girl was lying on the bed, drops of sweat running down her forehead, shaking.  
"Dad, what's wrong with her?" Lizzie asked, frightened.  
"I don't know, honey." He sat down on the bed close to Josie.  
"Josie, I know you're in pain, but I need you to talk to me, please." He tried.  
"I don't know, dad. I went to the bathroom and at that moment I had terrible cramps. I do not know what's happening." It was all the girl got out of.  
"Hope ..." he asked the tribrid.  
"Ad somnum," the girl said. At that moment, Josie lost consciousness.  
"What's wrong with her, Dr. Saltzman?" Hope asked, stepping closer to the bed.  
"I do not know. Let's hope she wakes up in the morning and she gets better. I will check the area around the gym. Lizzie, please keep an eye on your sister, if she wakes up, let me know right away.” Lizzie nodded.  
"If you want, I'll stay here overnight." Hope offered. She was worried about her friend.  
"It's all right, Hope. I believe it's nothing and Jo will be fine in the morning. " Lizzie said. Hope just didn't like to leave the room with the others. Lizzie closed the door and turned back to the motionless figure on the bed. "What's wrong with you, Jo," she asked out loud.


	8. Chapter 8

Lizzie slept in an armchair by her sister's bed. She was awakened by a storm raging outside. . It was about half-past two in the morning. She rubbed her eyes and looked at the alarm clock on her sister's desk. "Oh, crap." She moaned softly. At that moment, she realized that the bed on which her sister was lying was empty.  
"OH, CRAP" she repeated and ran out of the room. There was no trace of her sister. She ran to her father's room.  
"Dad,” she was banging on the door. “DAD!!." No one answered. She headed for his study, hoping to find him there. Fortunately, she was right, Alaric was sitting at his desk immersed in one of the many books.  
"Dad," Lizzie said. Alaric immediately got up from the table.  
"What's up, honey?" he asked.  
"It's about Josie. I fell asleep and she ... she is not there. She's not in the room. I do not know where she is." Lizzie blurted out, panicking.  
"It'll be all right, Lizzie. Listen to me, please go to Hope's room and tell her what's going on and we'll meet here. In the meantime, I'll go around the school quickly to look for Josie. Alright?" he tried to keep a cool head.  
"Okay," the girl said, heading back to the student’s rooms.

She stormed into the tribrid’s room without knocking. Hope was up immediately turning on the light.  
“Lizzie, there are some boundaries..” she wanted to give the blond witch a lesson from ethic, but stopped once she saw the face of the girl. Something was off.  
“What’s going on?” she asked.  
“Josie, she is missing,” was all Lizzie said.  
“Oh my god.” Hope jumped out of the bed instantly.  
“My dad is looking for her and we should meet him back in his office,” Lizzie informed her.  
“Let's go then.” Hope grabbed a jumper that was lying on her chair and both girls headed back to the headmaster's office.  
\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They were on their way to the office when Hope's attention was dragged to the nearby window, she saw a familiar figure lying in the middle of the lawn.  
"My God Josie." Hope snapped and immediately ran out of the building, Lizzie following her. The girl laid there unconscious. It was still raining heavily. Josie was wet from head to toes. "JOSIE." Her sister screamed as they ran to her.  
"Jos!!" Hope bent down next to the girl. Her pajamas were soaked with rain. Feet dirty from mud.  
"We have to take her inside, Lizzie," Hope said, grabbing Josie in her arms. When they entered the building, Alaric just appeared from around the corner.  
"Oh my god, Josie." He quickly checked to see if the girl had any injuries.  
"Dad, what's wrong with her?" Asked Lizzie, who was now crying.  
"I don't know, but we'll find out, Lizzie." He assured the girl.  
"Hope, please take Josie to the infirmary and stay with her," Alaric asked her. The tribrid nodded and headed for the infirmary.  
"It's all my fault, I should have looked after her better." Lizzie whimpered.  
"Lizzie, listen to me, none of this is your fault. We don't know what's going on with Josie, but we'll figure it out. OK? Come on, I'll put you to bed. You need to rest.” Alaric said, taking the crying girl back to her room.

Hope laid Josie on one of the beds, and the nurse began to undress her from the wet pajamas she was wearing. Hope turned around not to invade her friend's privacy.  
"Done, you can turn around now." said the nurse. Josie lay helplessly on the bed in dry pajamas what has been left there by another school kid. Hope sat on the edge of the bed.  
"Josie?" she tried.  
"Jo?" she put her hand on Josie’s shoulder. The girl began to regain consciousness slowly.  
"H-Hope?" she said softly.  
"Yes, I'm here, Josie." She said, one small tear rolled down her cheek.  
"What ... what happened?" the girl asked, startled.  
"What is the last thing you remember?" Hope asked.  
"I lay in my bed with a terrible stomach-ache and then ... just darkness." The girl said, frightened. "When Lizzie woke up in the middle of the night, you were not in the bed, we went looking for you and found you outside on the school grounds." Hope explained.  
"I don't remember anything," Josie said, she was scared. Hope saw the horror reflected in her friend's eyes. "What if, what if it is in me again?" Josie asked, frightened. Before Hope could react, the girl continued. "What if there's black magic in me again, Hope. Trying to trap me in my head again. "Jo, that's not possible, you do not have your powers. There must be another explanation. " She tried to calm her down.  
At that moment Alaric showed up at the bed. “Oh, thank god, Jo, you are up.” He hugged his daughter tightly.  
“Where is Lizzie?” asked Hope.  
“I take her to the bed, she was terrified, I did not want to give her more trauma. She is sleeping now.” He explained. Hope nodded.  
"Honey, are you okay? How do you feel?" he turned his attention back to his daughter?  
"I'm fine ... just tired," Josie lied. She was scared to death, unaware of what was happening to her. But she didn't want to scare her father. After another few minutes of questioning, Alaric decided to let the girl rest. He sent Hope to go to bed too and stayed with the girl himself if she happened to have another episode during the rest of the night.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_She opened her eyes. There were candles all around her. She knew the place. She was in the tomb where she first met the Necromancer when she was controlled by black magic._  
_“Oh, you again? Don't tell me you’ve missed me.” she heard a familiar voice. She turned._  
_"What are you doing here, witch?" he asked._  
_"I - I don't know." The girl looked around._  
_"But no .. that cant be… hahaha" laughter echoed through the tomb._  
_"This is going to be interesting," he said._  
_"What do you mean?" she asked him._  
_"My dear, you have no idea what you're getting into, do you?" Josie still didn't understand what he is talking about._  
_"I will be watching your next show with excitement. You know, maybe last time we may not have started the best, but since we got a second chance. Let's try it better. Shall we?" He started walking around the room._ _"_ _What are you talking about?" she asked again._  
_"You sweet girl, you have something in you that is under my influence, so you are now my partner in crime." He laughed devilishly._  
_"That's not possible, I have no magic in me and not black magic at all," she began to oppose in horror._  
_"A powerful demon is using you as a vessel now. He was in the shadows, but now it is time for him to come out into the light." He began to explain. At that moment, Josie remembered her strange encounter with a monster in the kitchen a few days ago. "Oh my God."_

SNAP. She woke up from a nightmare. She was sweating and breathing fast.  
"Honey, it's okay, you're safe." Alaric, who was sitting by her bed, tried to calm her down.  
"Dad." She hugged him.  
"How do you feel?" he asked. "A little better, thank you." Memories of her nightmare kept running through her mind. It was a nightmare, wasn't it? It didn't happen.  
"Honey?"  
"Um, yes?" she snapped back into reality.  
"I asked if you would like to bring something to eat. It is almost 8 am, Lizzie will be stopping by soon, so I can ask her to bring you breakfast,” he said again.  
"That would be great. I'm actually a bit hungry. " She said with a smile.  
“Great, please rest and I will see you later today,” he kissed her cheek and left the room.  
She laid down and took a deep breath trying to memorize the event of last night.

Alaric was on the way to the twin’s room when Kaleb stopped him.  
“Hey, Dr. Saltzman, the hot sheriff is here and wanna talk to you. She seems to be a bit pissed off. Hope you have not missed a date. That would be bad, dude.”  
Alaric ignored his silly comments.  
“Where is she?” he asked.  
“Your office.” Said the vampire and disappeared around the corner.  
Alaric went to his office.

“Hello, sorry, have I missed something?” he asked.  
“Sorry Ric, I am here on duty.” She said firmly.  
“Well, OK, what can I do for you sheriff Machado, then?” he asked politely.  
“There was a missing kid reported yesterday. We found a corpse just behind your school property early this morning,” she informed him.  
She handed him a photo. It was the photo of the dead body. It was a boy around 15 years old.  
“I do not know this kid. Do you know what happened to him?” he asked with curiosity.  
“Seems like a stroke. He has no trace of violence on his body. I am waiting on an autopsy. Will keep you posted then.” She took the photo back from his hand.  
“I will let you know if I have any info from my students.” He promised.  
“Thank you, Ric. See you later,” she said her goodbyes and left.  
His head was spinning. This could hardly be a coincidence. He was worried about his daughter. He took his phone and dialed the telephone number.  
“Hey, it is me. I am sorry to ask you this, but I need you back at school."


	9. Chapter 9

Several more days passed, Josie kept waking up at night from the same nightmare. Lizzie was always there to calm her down, and also Hope mixed her soothing herbal tea for better sleep. Josie felt she was not herself. She still felt as if there was another person in her. She kept replaying the conversation with the Necromancer in her head. She felt the rage inside of her as if she were about to explode at any moment. 

The new day 1 arrived. Alaric offered to take her to school that morning because he had some things to sort in town. Josie knew he was taking her just as an excuse to stop by the sheriff's office. The journey to school went in silence, Josie was nervous, yet she knew nothing but life at the Salvatore School, where she had spent most of her life. It wasn't like she didn't know anyone, she had the opportunity to meet a few students from football matches, even though they were never exactly friendly meetings. When they arrived at the school, Alaric said her last few words of support and hugged her. Josie got out of the car. She took one last deep breath and headed for school.  
"Hi, Jo!" she heard somewhere behind her. She turned to see a young ex-QB1 in front of her.  
"Hi Ethan, how are you?" she replied politely.  
"Great, I had no idea I'd see you so soon. Do you need help with any new article for school again?” he asked.  
"Um, well, no, actually. I got transferred to Mystic Falls High,” she said.  
"Wow, really? That's ... um, great,” he said, stunned. "But isn't your dad mad at you for leaving a private school to a regular high school? You know, with the headmaster stuff and all.." he asked.  
"Well, dad more or less understands this and supports my decision," she said.  
"Great, let's go then. I'd love to show you the school,” Ethan said enthusiastically. 

The day went by quite quickly. Josie had the opportunity to go through school and, also meet a few students, including Ethan's sister Maya. She enjoyed the lessons, it was a little different from studying potions and various spells, but Josie had a good foundation for studying at an ordinary school. After all, lessons of algebra or literature took place at the Salvatore School too. Josie checked her schedule to see what lesson will be the next one.  
"PE, well, so ..." she began to examine the map to get to the gym and the locker room the fastest. After a moment of examining the map, she finally found the correct direction. She turned right once, then left, went down the stairs. She opened the door and appeared in the wing of the school, which was under reconstruction. She looked around in confusion.  
"That's not possible ..." she told herself, re-examining the plan she held in her hand. At that moment she heard footsteps, someone was approaching her. She began to back away to the door, looking at what could be used for a possible defense. At that moment, the Necromancer appeared in front of her.  
"Well, well, who's wandering around, isn't it our sweet Josie Saltzman?" he said with a smile on his face, he crossed his arms.  
"What do you want from me?" she asked boldly.  
"I thought I told you clearly last time, I am in charge of you little girl. There's no need to resist, give in, and maybe we'll make a deal and I let your friends live,” he stepped closer.  
"No. I'm not your partner. I have no magic or monster in me,” the girl opposed. He watched her intently, grinning. "We'll see soon." And he disappeared. Josie slid to the ground, her back against the door of the entrance. She tried to take a deep breath. Her heart was pounding. Her eyes glowed bright green. It took another two or three minutes before Josie calmed down and headed for the gym to attend the class. She tried to push the previous encounter with Necromancer out of her head. 

"You're late, Miss Saltzman," the teacher said looking at his watch on his left wrist.  
"I'm so sorry, I got lost. It won't happen again,” she apologized and joined the other students for a warm-up.  
"Oh, isn’t she the sister of that crazy bitch, Lizzie Saltzman?" she heard behind her.  
"Well, it's her, I heard her daddy kicked her out of school. Poor girl, she was probably total loser there."  
Josie turned to see two familiar faces behind her, Dana's friends, who had been teasing her and Lizzie every football game.  
"Do you have a problem?" She asked, putting her hands on her hips. She could feel her anger rising. Her eyes gleamed.  
"What's up, Saltzman? Do you suffer from the same mental problems as your sister, it would give…" before the girl could finish the sentence, she was on the gym’s floor. Josie knocked her down with a combat move. She landed on her and started tugging at her hair. At that moment, her face was met with a fist. She rolled off in pain while holding her face. Before the girl could make any new attack, she was stopped by the teacher.  
"That's enough, you will both report at the headmaster’s office,” he shouted. Both girls stood up. Josie felt the pain in her face and how it started to swell. She headed out of the gym with her head down.

Josie sat in front of the school, holding a cold can of Coca Cola to her left side of the face. She waited for her father to pick her up and take her home.  
"Tough day?" She turned to see a familiar vampire next to her, watching the passing students, a smile playing on her lips.  
"JADE!?" she said in surprise.  
"Hi, Jos." Jade finally turned in her direction. Josie dropped the can of cola and threw herself into the girl's arms. She was unable to speak. She was so glad to see the girl again. Josie felt butterflies flying in her stomach. Jade held the girl tightly in her arms. After a while, she pulled away to look at the girl. She ran her fingers gently over her swollen eye.  
"The swelling should be gone soon, but your face will be a super color bar, Jo. Be sure to put some ice on it at home,” Jade said after the examination. "What happened anyway?"  
"Thanks, doc,” Josie teased her ignoring her question. "But really, Jade, what are you doing here? I thought you wanted to take a break from Mystic Falls and explore the world.”  
"Well, somehow I found out that what I'm looking for is maybe here," the girl said, her face flushed.  
"Um, will you come back with me and dad? He is about to pick me up." Josie said.  
Jade stood up and offer the girl her hand to help her on her feet. "Well, he actually sent me to take you home, Jo," Jade said, pointing to a black Jaguar standing in the parking lot.  
"Ah ..." was all she said. Jade offered to take her school bag and they headed to the car.

The journey to the Salvatore School passed quickly. Josie asked Jade where she was. Josie kept her up to date on the school’s life. Jade knew very well what was going on. Josie's father informed her over the phone, and that was one of the reasons why she was back in Mystic Falls. She knew that when the young witch will find out, she will be mad at her. But she wanted to wait until she could talk about it with her father first and then with Josie. 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
They arrived at school and went inside of the academy together.  
"I'm sorry, Josie, but I gotta go and talk to your father, he is waiting for me," she said apologetically. "Take care." She added, kissing the girl on the cheek. Unaware of why she has done it. She quickly muttered something about having a good day and left.  
Josie stood petrified, her face warming pleasantly under Jade's kiss. She flushed, a smile playing on her face. She headed to her room. Along the way, she came across the tribrid.  
"Josie, so what was the day like at the new school?" Hope asked before getting closer to the girl and noticing her injury.  
"Jo! What happened?” she asked, the blood was boiling inside of her with rage. She hates when Josie got hurt, especially when she is not around to stop it.  
"Nothing, Hope. Just stupid girl’s disagreements,” Josie really didn't want to talk about it.  
"Are you sure, Jo?" She insisted. The girl just nodded.  
"Okay, I'll at least bring you ice so it will stop the swelling," the girl offered and headed for the kitchen. Josie walked into her room. Lizzie wasn't there, she probably still had one of the afternoon lessons. Josie put the school bag down next to the bed. She laid down on her back. She closed her eyes. So much has happened in one day. She replayed all the memories of that day. Bright green eyes gleamed before her eyes. Someone knocked on the door lightly. It was Hope with a bag of ice in her hand.  
"Hi, Jo. I have the ice,” she said with a smile shaking with the bag in her hand. Hope sat down on the edge of the bed next to Josie. Josie straightened up. Hope lightly applied the ice bag to the younger girl's face.  
"Are you sure you don't want to talk about what happened?" she asked once more.  
"Just stupid remarks from Dana's friends…," Josie said.  
"I'm sorry, Josie. Um ... are you sure you don't want to study here instead?” she asked carefully.  
"No, Hope, I'm not giving up because of some stupid comments, I've gotten used to them in recent weeks anyway. But when it comes to Lizzie ..., " she exhaled. Hope knew that Josie could bear a lot, but when it came to her sister, she always loses her temper. Josie placed her hand on top of Hope’s to take the ice bag from her. Hope jerked a little at the touch of the younger girl.  
"Um, I should go to see dad before he goes crazy and breaks into our room." Josie apologized and got up from the bed.  
"Yes, sure." Hope nodded. "Josie?" she called after a moment to the girl already standing in the doorway. "If you ever want to talk, you know I'm always here for you, right?"  
Josie smiled at her. "Always." She replied and turned on her heel and disappeared. Hope exhaled and threw herself on the bed.


End file.
